First Silver Line buses begin service Monday: See official schedule for times, transfers

GRAND RAPIDS, MI — At its peak, The Rapid's new Silver Line Bus Rapid Transit service is slated to run at 10-minute intervals at every stop.

The metro's transit system posted the Silver Line's schedule and transfers table on its website Wednesday, Aug. 20, five days before wheels begin rolling. Although all 10 vehicles of the new bus fleet won't be in service all at once, officials claim the technology each holds will make each commute faster than one by car — as much as a 40 percent reduction.

Perhaps one of the more important pieces is technology that allows buses to electronically communicate their locations with The Rapid station, which then talks to traffic signals to hold a traffic light green upon approach, driver Matthew Whiting said. That gives buses and its passengers the leg up over a typical car to make the light.

The right lanes on portions of Monroe and Division avenues will be restricted to bus traffic only, too, during the morning and evening rush hours. Authorities eventually will enforce fines if motorists are caught in those lanes — a $110 ticket and two points on a license in Wyoming and a $118 fine in Grand Rapids. Kentwood officials still are determining its ordinance.

Another tactic to speed up commutes are the fare kiosk machines located at each of the 34 stations. Bus drivers won't collect bus fares, rather, passengers must purchase at least a $1.50 single ride — the same cost to ride on one of The Rapid's typical routes.

The Rapid officials will conduct random checks to catch fare dodgers, with a $65 fine for the first offense.

Here's a rundown of the inaugural stops at some stations Monday morning:

Central Station

Southbound:
5:10 a.m.

Northbound:
5:40 a.m.

Medical Mile Station

Southbound:
5:17 a.m.

Northbound:
5:33 a.m.

Burton Street Station

Southbound:
5:29 a.m.

Northbound:
5:20 a.m.

60th Street Station

Southbound:
5:43 a.m.

Northbound:
5:07 a.m.

Andrew Krietz covers breaking, politics and transportation news for MLive | The Grand Rapids Press. Email him at akrietz@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter.